Taiwan mangoes sell well at Tokyo event

2012/07/11 22:36:53

Tokyo, July 11 (CNA) An annual sale of Taiwanese mangoes at a Keio Department Store in Tokyo kicked off well Wednesday, with the two-day event predicted to rake in over 1 million Japanese yen (US$12,625).

Sales on the first day were excellent, proof that Japan is a good destination for Taiwan's mangoes, said Lo Koon-tsan, deputy representative to Japan, who attended the event organized by Taiwan's Council of Agriculture to promote Irwin mangos from Yujing, Tainan.

While mangoes from Taiwan rival those from Japan's Miyazaki Prefecture in appearance, nutritional content and taste, they are three to four times cheaper, Lo said, pointing out that two medium-sized mangoes fetch 980 yen.

One lady at the event said her family loved mangoes from Taiwan and made it a must to eat them every summer. "Summer does not begin until we eat mangoes," she said.

A sales representative surnamed Watanabe said the July event, now in its fifth year, grossed around 900,000 yen last year and put this year's estimated haul at over 1 million yen.